Software Evaluation & Selection

Every business expects that new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software will increase productivity and improve profitability. However, when implementing new software, many roadblocks can prevent the system from fully performing – choosing the wrong system, not installing the system correctly, not using the system or not using it effectively. Plus, software and software vendors are constantly changing. New product functionality and technology architecture get released to the market at least annually – some vendors release updates every 8-12 weeks.

The Brown Smith Wallace Software Evaluation & Selection team can navigate the changing landscape and help you find the best solution for your organization. We take you from setting up a project charter to evaluating and selecting software to defining targets for realizing your software benefits. We work to maximize your leverage in order to get the best possible price and terms throughout the following selection project components:

Project Charter – Before we begin the software selection process, we help you create a project charter to define your benefits, requirements and roles. Then we can provide a plan that defines each task, the timing of those tasks, and roles and responsibilities needed to complete the software selection process.

Software Evaluation & Selection – We follow a structured methodology to help you select a software solution that allows your organization to be more efficient and provide better information at a price that you can afford.

We start our selection projects by conducting process-based interviews with you and your staff to identify and document your critical processes. We then use the results of these interviews to derive and prioritize your requirements. These requirements will be the basis of the Request for Information (RFI) that we use to select vendors in the next step of the evaluation process. After scores are collected and software demos are completed, we will assist you with completing a decision matrix that evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of each vendor to arrive at the finalist.

By following our methodology, our team can reduce the risk of a mistake while ensuring that you will make the best choice for your company.

Contract & Price Negotiation – Negotiating a software purchase can be complex. Multiple documents are involved, including software licenses, maintenance agreement and implementation service agreements. Various deployment options, user types, third party software and custom modification can make the pricing difficult to understand. We standardize and normalize vendor proposals for easier comparison. We determine negotiating targets and then assist in or conduct the negotiations.

Implementation Monitoring Services – When the vendor’s implementation team arrives, your team will be consumed by the many tasks needed to successfully install the software, convert data, configure the software, educate the users, and conduct conference room pilots and plan for the go-live weekend. We will monitor your implementation for deviations from the plan and alert executive management before the project can get out of control.

Benefits Realization Management Services – Based on Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), we will mutually define the targets that are needed to achieve the anticipated benefits. It is important to make sure the software package you select satisfies your requirements and achieves your desired benefits.

Contact our team today to help you find the best ERP solution for your organization.